The beloved collection now updated with a new story

Narrated by the middle child of an East European family who fled to a Toronto suburb after the war, Antanas Sileika’s esteemed collection could be about any Canadian family in the ’50s and ’60s — if they had an outhouse on their suburban lot and were struggling, while plotting revenge on their English-speaking neighbours. Together, these touching, hilarious stories make up a powerful chronicle of a place and time, a close-knit community, and most of all, a family: three boys, a long-suffering mother, and a strangely lovable pipe-smoking, gadget-obsessed father.

First published in 1997, when it was a finalist for the Leacock Medal for Humour and the Toronto Book Awards, Buying on Time has become a favourite among readers for its snapshot of the immigrant experience and its rich humour. Now reissued with a new introduction and author story, Buying on Time Again is sure to move and delight a whole new generation.

“Funny, discerning, sharply observed… Reading [these stories] is as easy as breathing.” —The Montreal Gazette

“A moving and entertaining collection of short stories that has the unified feel and trajectory of a novel.” —Quill and Quire

“Welds humour, tragedy, and personal embarrassments we all live through in a colourful and memorable way.” —The Globe and Mail